It's Never Too Late To Learn Something New

You're never too old to learn, as the saying goes. At 87, Michelangelo said, "I'm still learning." For 102-year-old Thousand Oaks, Calif., resident Gerri Cowardin, learning has been a lifelong endeavor. A retired O.R. nurse, she has attended classes offered by California State University Channel Islands' Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Camarillo, Calif., along with her 74-year-old daughter, Geri Gretan.

Last semester, Cowardin took a bus from her residence to the OLLI campus in Thousand Oaks to attend music classes; she enjoys opera. Gretan, who was also a nurse, enrolled in science classes about stem cell research and DNA.

"There is no homework, no grades, just learning for the sake of learning," Gretan told IBD.

Gretan says her mother, who trained to be a teacher before changing career paths, has always been an avid learner. "She loves to read and still does crossword puzzles," she said.

A family affair. The mother-daughter duo, along with Gretan's 87-year-old husband (a retired doctor and history buff) learned in the local newspaper of the classes offered at OLLI. They were familiar with the school because Gretan's niece is an undergraduate nursing student there.

"I've attended classes at OLLI since its formation 13 years ago," Gretan said.

OLLI program director Nick Fuentes says classes are geared to learners 50 and up, with most of its students being between ages 65 and 75. He says the institute offers college-level classes taught by university professors and retired professionals in various fields. There are no prerequisite requirements to enroll.

In many cases, students are seniors who have spent time traveling and exploring hobbies for a few years after retirement and are now ready for a change.

Coffee and class. "They come out to a college campus, take two classes in the morning, and then it's a social time," Fuentes told IBD. "They have lunch on campus, hear undergraduates discussing things; there's a lot of interaction going on there. They say they are stimulated and feel like they have a purpose again."

Learning is a two-way street in OLLI classrooms. Given that faculty is often younger than students, sometimes students can offer personal anecdotes of the subject at hand, Fuentes says.

"We once had a student who told the class about his experience in The Bay of Pigs (the failed military invasion of Cuba)," Fuentes said.

Fuentes says about 900 students attend classes at its various campuses in Ventura County, Calif. OLLI offers 25 to 30 courses per session. Included in this summer's catalog: "The 1979 Iranian Revolution," "The Fiscal Collapse of 2008," "Education in Finland: Achievement through Equity," "Genetically Modified Foods: Love 'Em or Leave 'Em," "The Physiology of Emotion" and "The Power of Stem Cells." The classes are available Monday through Saturday.

Memory boost. Lifelong learners have a variety of interests and reasons for pursuing continuing education. According to a recent Pew Research study, 80% of adult learners said they pursued knowledge in an interest area because they wanted to learn something that would make their life more interesting and full. Sixty percent said they had extra time on their hands to dedicate to learning.

The benefits of lifelong learning are varied too, according to the Pew survey. Nearly 90% said their learning activities "helped them feel more capable and well rounded." About 70% said learning "opened up new perspectives about their lives." And 64% said their learning "helped them make new friends."

Indeed, the social aspect of going to a class with others is an added benefit to mental health, according to brain research. Researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota recently published results of an 11-year study that showed that seniors around the age of retirement who socialized regularly reduced by 55% the onset of declining mental function that could progress to dementia in their eighties.

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